Page 9 - Materials Australia - April 2019

MATERIALS AUSTRALIA
WA Branch Technical Meeting – 21 November 2018 Perth Branch Annual Sir Frank Ledger Breakfast
RAC Automated Vehicle Program
Source: Ann Still – RACWA, General Manager of Public Policy
The Materials Australia Western Australia (WA) Branch annual Sir Frank Ledger Breakfast commemorates
the influence of Sir Frank Ledger in the founding and promotion of Materials Australia. This year’s breakfast featured a valuable presentation by Ann Still (General Manager of Public Policy, RACWA) on the practical and legal issues associated with automated vehicles. The issues raised during the presentation will need to be confronted as autonomous processes spread wider into our operation, maintenance and inspection areas. Ann, who has an extensive career in transport planning in Australia and the UK, commenced her talk by describing automated vehicle (AV) technology as the single biggest disruption to the mobility sector since the invention of motor cars. The
Royal Automobile Club of WA (RACWA) has a 105 year history
of advocacy which started with campaigning for the rights of motorists. However, with the coming of AV technology, the RACWA has broadened the scope of its advocacy to include ‘better mobility’. This encompasses the ability of people to move around safely and easily, without owning a car.
One major implication of AV is the potential for reducing the
need for private ownership of cars and a move to ‘platform- based’ transportation. This is exemplified by services such as
Uber, but the development of AV technology is reflected in
parallel developments by information-based companies such as Google, and by major car-makers. The RACWA sees that future governments will have to deal with changes in the population’s transport choices and is using its AV technology trial to establish a knowledge base that it can use as a ‘compass to guide decision- makers’. Thus, the RACWA Intellibus® and Intellicar® trials are not a pursuit of technology for technology’s sake, but a commitment to ensure AV technology can be applied to solve urban and regional mobility challenges in Australia.
Ann explained the considerations that led to the current trial. Commenced in 2015, the trial uses two Navya Intellibus units
on a fixed route on an open public road under a special legal exemption. Although the technology has similarities with that now widely used in autonomous vehicles on closed mine sites, there are more complications in its use on public roads. There
are other moving vehicles, cyclists and pedestrians, and simply recognising the road brings its problems. The route in South Perth has tree cover, so GPS navigation is not reliable. Furthermore, the tree canopy is constantly moving, causing problems for reliance on detailed LiDAR mapping. Speed humps must be distinguished from obstacles on the road, and communication between the vehicle and the traffic management infrastructure control system is needed, as the vehicle does not recognise traffic lights. Badly parked cars also pose problems as the vehicle will not cross the road centre-line to veer around them.
The test vehicle, which travels at a maximum of 20kph, has a driver at the wheel. Any manual interventions are logged as part of the trial data. After more than 2,000 circuits, the frequency of intervention is very low. The RACWA’s surveys show that safety
Photo L-R: Louise Petrick, Ann Still
is the main factor in the public’s mind; both as a benefit, but
also as the main concern. Technically, the ‘gamechanger’ will be the addition of Radar to complement LiDAR, together with the
3D mapping of Perth streets. This will lead to the next stage of development with the smaller Navya Intellicar, which can travel at up to 90kph. This is designed for free-ranging travel with the option for hailing via a smartphone app. Ann is confident that city travel will look very different 20 years from now, and the RACWA is determined to ensure the best outcome for the community.
Answering questions from the audience, Ann described where Perth stands in global AV technology development. The Perth
trial was only the second in the world, and although there are now thousands in progress, ‘Perth is holding its own’. Singapore
is currently the overall leader in automated transport, and the French company Navya remains a leader in commercial technology development. Google is also active but secretive; it is thought to have the most advanced technology, and it has announced that it is developing an automated paid taxi service.
Ultimately, automated vehicles cannot rely on having ‘someone in the vehicle paying attention’. Remote monitoring and control are needed, and this must be in real time, with low latency. At present, the default for loss of monitoring is ‘stop’.
Major questions concerning the legal situation with automated vehicles are yet to be resolved. The first stage of the RACWA trial in South Perth operated with legal exemptions, but these have not been extended for the next phase. Even without accidents, which should be avoidable, what happens if an automated vehicle breaks the law? What is the law regarding extraction of data from, or collected by, an automated vehicle?
The ethical issues raised by automated vehicles are also much broader reaching. One view is that vehicles, and their control systems, should be designed so that ‘no one in the vehicle will die’. But what of other people who are not in the vehicle? How should a runaway vehicle be stopped? Personal ethical biases
will inevitably be written into controlling software. Will the
issue be determined by governments, or by manufacturers? As autonomous processes enter the materials field, the audience was left with plenty to think about.
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